Disgraced Pal-Mac administrator got $40,000

The school board has little to say about the reasons it settled with a man convicted of stealing from the district.

Tracey Curry

PALMYRA — The disgraced former school official who claimed his firing from the Palmyra-Macedon School District was unjustified walked away from his lawsuit with $40,000.

In an eight-page settlement document released by district officials Friday, William D. Nichiporuk, the man groomed to lead Pal-Mac, but who was instead jailed for taking money from the district, agreed to drop all claims, including a lawsuit filed in federal court. In return, he will receive $25,242.25 for wages, accrued sick time, and vacation allotment owed him according to his contract as assistant superintendent for business. The balance, $14,757.45, is payment for compensatory damages and attorney's fees.
Shortly after his 2004 appointment to succeed Dr. Jim Tobin as superintendent of schools, district officials learned that Nichiporuk, 56, of Victor, purchased his doctorate degree from an English diploma mill, Brentwick University. Its address is actually located above a laundry in London.

Further investigation by an independent auditor turned up a $1,900 voucher paid to Nichiporuk for a course at the University of Rochester that he never attended.

In September 2005, he was jailed after being convicted of first-degree offering a false instrument for filing and fourth-degree grand larceny, both felonies. He subsequently filed a civil suit in federal court against the Board of Education, claiming breach of contract. The suit sought to have the job reinstated, lost pay reimbursed with interest, punitive damages, legal fees and damages to compensate for "mental anguish and emotional distress."

In February 2006, U.S. District Court Judge David Larimer denied partial summary judgement of that suit, forcing Nichiporuk to prove he'd been wronged before a jury. The settlement, Interim Superintendent of Schools Hal Ferguson said, had to be reached by Sept. 28, the deadline before the next phase in the federal court proceedings was set to begin.

In a unanimous vote Tuesday, July 23, Board of Education members authorized signing the document ending the 2 1/2-year legal dispute that, by its terms, placed a gag order on them, binding them to confidentiality about the reasons for the settlement.
In a prepared statement read after the vote, school board President John Kratzert state, "One of the terms of the settlement is a commitment by the board to confidentiality concerning the agreement. Consequently, on the advice of our legal counsel, neither the board nor individual members of the Board of Education will have any further comment on this matter."

Kratzert said he could not comment about the settlement, and district officials simply responded to Freedom of Information requests submitted by members of the press and released the document.

"Personally, I would have liked the insurance company not to given him a dime," said past school board member Lynne Eder. "But, I do believe it is a good deal and better than taking a chance in court."

Eder, president of the Board of Education when the scandal became public, said she was not surprised by the settlement amount.

"He didn't deserve more," she said. "I'm very glad the board stuck to their guns."
Eder said that because of underlying circumstances she couldn't speak of, she believes Nichiporuk had a weak case and "the chances to him getting more than that would have been slim to none."

Dianne Dorfner, also a member of the board when the case began, concurred with Eder that he was entitled compensation according to contract, but not with paying attorney fees.

"I have no problem paying him wages he's owed," she said. "But why would we have to pay for his attorney unless ... he had a case against us and won? He didn't win."
She, too, said she wasn't surprised Nichiporuk decided to settle.

"We had a fantastic case against him," she said. "I wish we had gone to court so everyone would know what I know."

That truth, she said, is a matter of executive session.

Nichiporuk did not return request for comment.

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